Thanks to Netgalley & Harlequin Trade Publishing for the E-ARC! So cute! Loved the characters and the bookish references. Will definitely read more from this author.

I enjoyed this story but it was definitely not what I was expecting based on the cover/blurb. I went into this expecting a cute RomCom and that's not what this is.

I loved the idea of our MCs communicating through annotations in the margins of classic books exchanged in a little free library and there was great potential as a super slow burn, childhood friends to enemies to lovers however this story has a very heavy focus on loss/grief, childhood trauma from bullies, mental illness, and family issues. There are so many side characters with their own things going on that the romance aspect definitely feels like a subplot.

I would love to have seen an epilogue with some insight on how the relationship played out

Thank you to Netgally, Harlequin Trade Publishing | Graydon House, and Tessa Bickers for the opportunity to read and leave an honest review for this ARC

Loved this book though I wouldn’t classify it as a romance - it’s much deeper than that. It’s well-written with great character development and past/present timelines are my favorite. Erin and James touched my heart.
This novel touches on love, grief, mental illness and how our childhood often affects us into adulthood.
I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Thank you to Tessa Bickers and Harlequin Trade Publishing for giving me the opportunity to read this ARC. The Book Swap publishes on September 3rd, 2024.

The Book Swap is a story two people who connect through writing in the margins of classic books. It’s about grief, second chances, family issues, and mental health. As the book progress, Bickers does a wonderful job balancing the main characters building a relationship while also building on their personal growth. I fell in love with James’ storyline. He went through so much growing up and then again as he navigated adulthood. What he wrote in those margins was so beautiful.

If you liked Dash and Lily on Netflix, you’ll LOVE this book.

Favorite quotes:
“If I can’t marry Harry Styles, I’m never getting married,”

“7. If you could be a character from any book, who would you be, and why? Atticus Finch, for obvious reasons. My new purpose is for someone to call me a ‘dreamboat’ before I die.”

Tropes:
Second chance
Hate to love
Fated


-this review can be found on instagram and Goodreads.
-review was posted 5/2/24

The Book Swap by Tess Bickers 📚
Thank you to @netgalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review!
(3.5 rounded up) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

My thoughts: This book had such a slow beginning but I ended up enjoying it in the end. It was so cute, so beautifully written. The characters had such a heartbreaking past. It just shows you how much more beautiful life could be if we forgave. Forgiveness is important, not just for others, but mostly yourself. This also brought awareness to always be kind. You never know what someone else is going through.

This is one of my top reads for 2024. The character building and literary references were amazing.

It’s labeled as a romance which I think might confuse people who are used to clear cut romances where the main characters are in constant contact by the end of chapter 1. This is a slow burn with a lot of reflection by James and Erin.

The book jumps between the present and the past to really tie everything together. A lot of topics are touched on. How our childhood trauma follows us into adulthood. How our parents shape us. What an easy path vs following your heart looks like. Erin is stuck in the past, complete with “seeing” her dead friend living with her. James has both grown up while desperately seeking parental approval. They share books anonymously through a lending library. Which reminded me of Divine Rivals.

So is it a love story? There is a love of books. A love of family. Rejoicing at following dreams. And a lot of love between couples.

Definitely low spice. Some closed door mentions. Quite a bit of bullying described among kids. Excellent characters and settings. It all flowed well and I really felt connected to the characters. Recommended for those who enjoy literary fiction with romance, character studies or complex human relationships.

4.25 ⭐️
This book was really good, I was quite shocked it was Tessa Bickers first novel! This book reminds me of “You Got Mail” with a childhood friends to lovers twist! Erin and James were really good together and had such a sweet story. I love how she incorporated so many classic books and I loved the way they communicated to each other between the margins of their books! This was such a creative use of a Little Free Library. This book does deal with some heavier topics but I thought she handled them with grace and care. What really stood out to me was the guilt and pressure that comes with being a caretaker for a parent while in your 20s. This isn’t something I’ve ever read about in a book before and I found it so impactful.

Thank you so much to Harlequin Trade Publishing and NetGalley so this ARC in exchange for an honest review! My Goodreads review is linked to this and when I post my Instagram review I will link it here as well!

I wanted to love The Book Swap, especially with such an adorable cover hinting at a cute rom-com. Unfortunately, I couldn't get past the halfway mark. Reading this book started to feel like a bit of a chore. I caught myself skimming pretty early on, which is never a good sign for me.

The plot turned towards heavier themes rather quickly, which threw me off a bit. It’s not that I mind a deeper story, but I was expecting something light and breezy, and this shift might be because the book might've been mismarketed.

I also didn't like the main characters, Erin and James. Maybe I wasn’t in the right headspace for this kind of story, which can totally change how you feel about a book.

Big thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC! It’s always great to get a chance to dive into new stories, even if this one wasn’t quite for me.

I tried getting into this one but it was a quick DNF for me, unfortunately. The story was very confusingly written which made it difficult to connect to the characters or their lives. I was really excited for this one so it's a sad thing to have to do but I don't think I could make it through the entire book.

This was cute! It had a lot of depth in regards to real life situations and emotions! As a person who loves books I appreciated the nods to classics! Great story & thoroughly enjoyed!

This book was not my typical read. I had been reading a lot of fantasy and needed a palette cleanser and this felt just right. The characters are so much fun and I am such a sucker for a dual POV. It was written in a way that kept me interested until the very last second as I was constantly waiting to find out when the characters would discover each other! I loved this.

thank you to NetGalley for giving me the arc in exchange for an honest review!

I could not get into this book, the book cover and description give a much more romance light hearted vibes, this was not that.
it was very slow. it took a really long time for any of the plot to happen. it took around 60 pages for the plot to begin. the pacing was also a little odd. months would pass and i wouldn’t realize it but then scenes would drag on.i had a hard time getting into the book because of that. also both main characters are a bit entitled and hard to like. James is more so enjoyable and likeable.

Song of the book: Talk to You - Ricky Montgomery

This book is not for the faint of heart. This book is for the slow-burn warriors (read: me) who can handle hundreds of pages of yearning over 15+ years. This is what romance novels should be!

I really enjoyed this book. It’s such a fantastic debut from Tessa Bickers. I am already so genuinely excited to see anything she writes next. The Book Swap was a lovely combination of romance and literary fiction. Don’t be fooled by the cover; it was definitely more serious than a typical romantic comedy (I’m hesitant to even call it a “romantic comedy,” but not in a bad way). It dealt a lot with themes of grief and mental illness. The main characters have hurt each other deeply and have a long relationship that has been interrupted by over a decade of hate (mostly one-sided). There were definitely times while I was reading that I was wondering how they could get to a point of forgiveness. Nevertheless, they did!!

I’m also so unbelievably psyched that this was a two-person love triangle. That is very much my favorite trope. For all my You’ve Got Mail lovers, you need to pick up this book immediately. I promise you’ll adore it. Bickers did such a great job with the interactions between Erin and James through their book exchanges. I had only read one of the books they discussed, and I still enjoyed it. Most of their non-epistolary interactions take place in the past, as they don’t see each other in-person often during the book, given that Erin really resents James for something he did in high school.

One thing that bothered me about this book was that they discussed The Perks of Being a Wallflower a bit too much. I liked that book plenty, but it’s a pet peeve of mine when modern pop culture is featured in a book. I know that one isn’t too recent, but with the amount it was brought up, I was a little annoyed.

Another thing that annoyed me until I realized that I was actually the stupid one was the book formatting. The margins were so wide and there was always a blank page after every chapter. I thought it was weird, but then I realized the whole point is to give someone room to write in the margins and on the blank pages!! I am not longer annoyed and instead find that adorable. Forgive me for judging too harshly.

Overall, I highly recommend this book! It’s one of the best romances I’ve read in a while. I hope it gets a lot of well-deserved praise once it’s officially published in September.

I enjoyed the book. A few times I thought it was slightly drawn out and I didn't love Erin or James they were both pretty entitled but they released it and that made them likable enough

"The Book Swap" highlights the power of reading and how it can help heal and bring people together. This story follows the relationship of Erin and James beginning in adolescence into adulthood. When we meet Erin, she recently quit her job and is struggling with grief after losing her best friend 3 years earlier. Meanwhile, James is spliting his time between London working at a job he doesn't love and returning home to help take care of his mother during her bipolar episodes. After Erin unintentionally donates "To Kill a Mockingbird" to her local free library with a final note from her best friend which she is desperate to get back, she returns to the library for days hoping whoever borrowed the book will return it. To Erin's delight her book is returned and there are responses to all her notes she left in the margins. Erin and James renew their friendship through books and in doing so learn about forgiveness, love, and finding passion again in life.

This book gave me all the feels. James' story was particularly heartbreaking at times. Erin's journey was messy and there were moments when I wanted to tell her to stop being so self-centered, but out of those experiences came growth. I finished reading this book at my favorite wine bar with some big tears and I couldn't have picked a better place to finish this beautiful story.

Thank you NetGalley, Harlequin Trade Publishing, and Tessa Bickers for this ARC. I am so excited see what Tessa comes up with next!

thank you to NetGalley for giving me the arc in exchange for an honest review!

i unfortunately did not like this💀

it was very slow. it took a really long time for any of the plot to happen. it took around 60 pages for the plot to begin. the pacing was also a little odd. months would pass and i wouldn’t realize it but then scenes would drag on. a wish that there was a little less characters because it was so confusing who was who and their relevance to the story.

i thought The Book Swap was advertised and the cover looked like a romance but it was more literary. i had a hard time getting into the book because of that.

i did really like James though! i thought he was really sweet. he cared a lot about his family and it was very admirable. i did love the book exchanges. it was such an unique premise and i really enjoyed when we got to the part about the margin annotations.

This book caught me by surprise, as it was not the light hearted beach read I expected based on the title and cover. This was a deep and connected story of friendship, family, mental illness, forgiveness, grief, self discovery and ultimately, a love of reading. This story follows the lives of two parted friends who unknowingly find their way back to each other through their love of literature. This was a unique and compelling story that held my attention and curiosity throughout. If you're looking for a lighthearted read, this isn't it, but it's definitely a great first novel from this new author!

Thank you, NetGalley, for this ARC.
I really wanted to like this book. A romance built via a free little library?! I have a soft spot for romance building through messages and/or books, but unfortunately, this one was difficult to get through.

The story has potential, but Bickers chooses too many big tropes/themes that most of them are simply not followed through.

The book reads like a mixture of dramatic reactions and rushed cut scenes.

I can't give this a 3 star, but I feel guilty for selecting 2 as well.

Thank you to NetGalley, Tessa Bickers and Harlequin Trade Publishing for giving me a chance to read this early for an honest review. This book was absolutely wonderful. The characters felt so real. They were complicated and complex and relatable. I really rooted for Erin and James and their friends and family. I also loved the way books were brought into the story. I believe many readers will appreciate that aspect of the story too. I do wish there were some trigger warnings for death/grieving and bullying but that is a minor thing.

This was not what I expected at all; at first, I was worried I would give up on it. The timeline confused me and I couldn't get over how the two characters didn't face to face interact until 3/4 of the way through. What James went through was awful, and Erin's embarrassment was mortifying. I could easily see why she iced him out for so long. All in all, it was a nice read that demonstrated the grief of losing someone you consider a soulmate, and I appreciated Erin's journey in letting go of Bonnie.